The Battle of the Bands on Monday night featured 15 performances from solo artists and bands. The winner was The Goodnight Fields with 43 votes.
"We're really shocked and humbled," guitarist Blake Mohler said. "We thought we'd put up a good fight, but we never expected to win. This is crazy."
The competition was bittersweet for lead singer and guitarist Chris Green of the band Can I Get One? While the Westfield native's band was melting faces with its vintage rock powers, Green's mind was drifting somewhere else — basic Army training, which he will begin March 9.
Although Green plans on staying in touch with his band members as much as possible, he said this performance will be his last. Despite the typical weight of a final performance, Green did not feel the pressure.
"I try to isolate myself and stay impersonal during a performance," he said. "A band should be able to exist outside the influence of the crowd."
However, Green was affected by the crowd nonetheless.
"There is no better feeling than when you see people get up and dance to your music. It feels great to be able to share something with people without it getting lost in translation," he said.
The crowd enjoyed the band's performance of the 1971 Led Zeppelin classic "Rock and Roll." Green said the group's influences are "solidly rooted in the past."
The retro, nostalgic music was fitting considering this performance will be Green's last performance for a long time. His upcoming departure from music added poignancy to the lyric, "It's been a long time since I rock-and-rolled."
Green was not thinking about winning. He was at the competition for the love of music.
"I have great respect for bands and anyone who has the ability to play on their own," he said. "The musicians at this competition are refreshing to see because I can't relate to the newer established bands or artists. I think the musicians here have more talent in one finger than Miley Cyrus and Justin Bieber have in their entire bodies. Forgive the cliché there."
Green said Can I Get One? was far from the only worthy band to grab the audience's attention in the Student Center Ballroom.
"All the bands have been fun to listen to, but The Day After seemed to be having the most fun on stage. They deserve to win because they had a lot of energy," freshman Chris Collord said.
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